Neo Marauders Year 1: The Sorcerer's Stone
by sithlorde1988
Summary: Part 1 of my rebooted AU Neo Marauder series, that explores the possibilites that could exist if Harry had been rescued by his new neighbor. Rated M for character deaths, abuse, gore, and language. Year 1 AU. Better summary, warnings, and pairings inside.


_**A/N: Welcome to chapter the first of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone AU, which will be the first of the seven books in the Harry Potter series, given my majorly AU embellished treatment, so as such, there's going to be a lot of warnings, but as to the pertinent ones to this fic they are as thus: Good!Ravenclaw!Draco, Good!Peter, Evil!Alive!James, Good!Severus, Alive!Lily, eventual Good!Magical Dursleys, Hufflepuff!Harry, Ravenclaw!Hermione, Good!Slytherin!Ron, Scheming!Dumbles, Grey!misguided!Voldy, Good!McGonagall. Normally, I'd add pairings here, but since this is only first year, there's going to be no need for those as yet, and with that, it's time to welcome our special guests to do today's disclaimers: my OC Joshua and his younger sister Gwen!**_

_**Joshua: Thank you sithlorde1988, who does not own the Harry Potter series or the characters shown within, save for his OC's that pop up, but everything else belongs to J.K Rowling and Scholastic.**_

_**Gwen: That's lame, bro. So we don't get to see some cool collars like those guys over there? *points to where several other people can be seen***_

_**SL88: Umm, don't mind them, those are the disclaimers crew for my OTHER fanfic. And Joshua nice disclaimer. That said, on with chapter 1!**_

**Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone AU**

Chapter 1-Setting the stage

"Boy! Get down here and get things ready! The Prigmores will be here soon, and I don't want them thinking we're messy hosts, so snap to it, or no meals for a week!" Vernon Dursley of #4 Privet Drive barked to his nephew, one Harry James Potter, whom scuttled off to do his uncle's bidding, for fear that Vernon would carry through with his threat of using the cattle prod on him if he didn't toe the line.

For you see, Vernon and his wife and son, Petunia and Dudley Dursley, are what some call Muggles (not a drop of magical blood in their veins), so to them, having to be related to Harry is something that they prefer to avoid acknowledging if at all possible, since they've had to be saddled with him since he was left on their doorstep when he was only a year old, the apparent victim of an attack by Lord Voldemort, a wizard whose name many witches and wizards to this day still fear to speak, for fear of the many atrocities he'd committed, and Harry was no exception to his wrath, or more specifically, his parents, Lily and James Potter, weren't exceptions to Voldemort's wrath.

Harry, himself, WAS targeted by Voldemort, BUT when Voldy tried to off poor Harry, his spell bounced back onto him, and seemingly destroyed him, forcing his spirit to flee somewhere FAR away. Needless to say, by surviving that curse, Harry was from then on known as the "Boy-Who-Lived" to all who grew up in the Wizarding World, well those that were at least half-blood wizards, as those who grew up with Muggles wouldn't know of that.

But, following this attack, since Harry was effectively an orphan, Dumbledore, seemingly acting in Lily and James' best interests, sent Harry to live with his Muggle relatives, the Dursleys, who quickly proceeded to hate and detest him, or at least Vernon and Petunia did at any rate. Dudley, for his part, despite being only a year old, sensed that he'd need to protect his cousin on several occasions, so he opted to not hate him.

Of course, such things tend to change over time, and in the Dursleys' case, this was particularly true, as now at the age of six years old, Harry had reluctantly come to accept his role as the Dursley household's personal butler of sorts, and, as Dudley had explained it to him, every good butler had to have his own personal office, so to this end, Harry ended up being put up in the cupboard under the stairs, where Dudley said that Harry could keep thinking of it as an office, though Vernon and Petunia were pleased with it since it meant that they could keep the second bedroom for Dudley to keep his toys and stuff in.

What the three Dursleys did NOT know, however, was that this one act would come back to have some very unexpected and irrevocable consequences, but at this point, they were too worried about making a good impression on the Prigmores to consider that Harry could be the key to truly making that good impression. Of course, they didn't have too long to ruminate on this, as while Harry was outside doing his chores, their guests were choosing now to arrive.

Speaking of Harry, he was proficiently struggling along with doing the task of pulling the long overdue for pulling weeds, and doing badly at it, but as he worked, he suddenly heard the sound of a car pulling up, as he looked up to see that it was the Prigmores, who were Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia's guests, but what he was not expecting was that they'd have kids his age, one boy and one girl.

While the little girl followed her parents into the house, the boy, seemingly on a whim, opted to explore a bit more around the outside, almost as if being guided to do it, which was how Harry turned around to see the boy watching him. He turned to Harry.

"Need a hand there?" the boy asked. Harry, while relieved he could get help with this, was worried about what his aunt would do if she saw him being helped by this boy, and turned to the boy.

"Yes, please." Harry replied, deciding that maybe this would help improve the Prigmores' opinions of his aunt and uncle, so he went with it, so the two started setting to work, Harry yanking weeds with his hands, while, to his surprise, the boy helping him pulled out an axe and started to carefully extricate the weeds, and pile them up behind them, while turning to dig more up.

After several sweaty minutes, the two had the weeds all dealt with, and they had a few seconds to sit and catch their breaths, Harry turned to the boy who helped him again.

"Hey, thanks for the assist. I'm Harry, and you are?" Harry asked.

"My name's Joshua Prigmore, but most of my friends just call me Josh for short, not sure why, but I'm not complaining." Josh replied, extending his hand to Harry, which Harry shook. After doing so, Josh was able to get a good look at Harry, and was actually astounded at how skinny the boy was compared to himself.

"So Harry, if you don't mind me being nosy, may I inquire as to how old you are?" Josh asked. Harry quirked an eyebrow at the question, but shrugged.

"I'm six, and you?" Harry replied simply. Josh's jaw dropped at hearing this, as he'd pegged the boy in front of him for at most a four year old, but knowing how old he was, knew something was NOT right with Harry, or worse with the Dursleys.

However, before Josh could answer, the door closed and out stepped the little girl who Harry had seen follow her parents into the house, clearly looking for Josh. Josh noticed this as well.

"Gwen, over here." Josh said to his sister. Gwen came to where her brother was, and like her brother, gaped at how skinny Harry was.

"Okay, since my sister's apparently shocked by what she sees, Harry, this is my little sister, Gwendolyn Marie Prigmore, though we just call her Gwen for short." Josh said.

Gwen, once she'd recovered from her shock, glared slightly at her brother, then turned to Harry.

Harry, for his part, smiled at the warm exchange between the siblings with a slightly wistful look, something both siblings noticed.

"Nice to meet you, Gwen. I'm Harry Potter, and as I told your brother, I'm six, even if I look skinny and short for my age." Harry replied, as Gwen's jaw dropped, and she knew she was right about her assessment of the Dursleys, which was why she came outside.

She turned and motioned for her brother to follow her so they could talk privately.

Josh, looking confused, turned to Harry.

"I'll be right back, Harry, Gwen wants a private word apparently." Josh said.

Once he and Gwen were out of Harry's earshot, Josh turned to his sister.

"What's wrong, sis?" Josh asked, seeing the worried look on his sister's face.

"You know how Mom and Dad are supposed to sign a deal with these Dursleys so that the father, Vernon, can expand his operations? Well, I was going to the bathroom, when I stumbled, quite literally, and fell into the open cupboard beneath their stairs, and you'll never guess what I found: someone lives in it, since I could see a bucket full of urine in it, and one half of a crayon, and lots of dried blood. And given how small the space was, I'll give you three guesses who's room it is." Gwen said, with a dark look on her face Josh also adapted when she'd finished.

"Those despicable bastards! I knew there had to be something wrong with poor Harry, or he wouldn't be THAT skinny OR short, even if he was small for his age." Josh snarled.

"I agree, however, I did notice that since it was open, that it was mainly the older Dursleys doing the abusing, since I suspect their son, Dudley, is helping Harry where he can, possibly with help from the mother." Gwen added, as the door opened again, and this time it was Harry's cousin, Dudley, who walked out.

"Harry, where are you? And are Josh and Gwen with you?" Dudley called.

"I'm in the back, mowing, Dud, and the two Prigmore siblings are over around the corner somewhere having a private word, and Josh wouldn't say what it was about." Harry called back, as you could hear the unmistakable sound of a mower starting up, except what Harry did not see was that there was a rock in front of him, until he tripped, fell and lost control of the mower.

As a result of this, Harry ended up causing the mower to start barreling around the corner, tilting so the mower was standing on just it's bottom wheels, and when Harry got up, he saw, as did Joshua and Gwen, who had come around the corner to see what Dudley wanted, all three with looks of panic, that the mower was out of control…..and heading right FOR Dudley!

Dudley, for his part, only saw the mower, and didn't have time to react before he saw the blades coming after him, and simply started running, hoping he could outrun the mower, but thankfully for him, just seconds before it was going to get him, Harry saw it, and shouted,

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

at the top of his lungs, causing what happened next to be a surprise to all, even the adults who had come running at Dudley's scream, which he'd uttered when he saw the mower: the mower suddenly stopped moving, and seemingly combusted inches from Dudley, who luckily had been able to run off when the mower stopped and got far enough away he wasn't hurt by the ensuing explosion.

"Harry, you ok?" Dudley asked his cousin, when he saw that Harry had tripped and fallen on his face.

Josh and Gwen, for their part, were still in shock at how Harry had seemed to use his hands to make the mower stop then self-destruct in time to save Dudley, but unfortunately for Harry, Vernon had seen the whole thing, and was mad at Harry.

"BOY! YOU DARE ATTACK OUR SON AFTER ALL WE'VE DONE FOR YOU? YOU GO TOO FAR, AND YOU'RE GOING TO GET IT GOOD WHEN OUR GUESTS LEAVE, NOW GO TO YOUR CUPBOARD AND DON'T COME OUT AGAIN!" Vernon bellowed at the top of his lungs, missing the shocked looks on the the two elder Prigmores' faces, as well as the disbelieving looks on the faces of Petunia, Dudley, and the two younger Prigmores, while Harry himself was silently trembling in fear as he retreated to the dreaded cupboard.

After the awkward silence ended, Mr. Prigmore opened his mouth.

"DURSLEY! YOU KEEP A SIX YEAR OLD BOY IN A CUPBOARD? AND THREATEN HIM WHEN HE SAVED YOUR SON'S LIFE? YOU ARE THE ONE WHO'S GONE TOO FAR, AND YOU CAN FORGET EVER SIGNING ANY DEAL WITH ME OR MY WIFE! IN FACT, DON'T BE SURPRISED IF CHILDREN'S SERVICES PAYS YOU A LITTLE VISIT ALONG WITH THE AUTHORITIES!" roared, while Mrs. Prigmore took her kids and shuffled them to the car to wait for her, while she went inside to Harry.

When she found the frightened little boy sitting there, cowering, she saw red, and went back outside.

"VERNON DURSLEY, YOU ARE HORRIBLE! MAKING A SIX YEAR OLD SLEEP IN A CUPBOARD WITH NO FOOD AND WATER, AND NOT LETTING HIM OUT TO USE THE BATHROOM! NOT TO MENTION THE MENTAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAUMA YOU PUT HIM THROUGH! IF I WASN'T SURE YOU WERE ACTING ALONE IN THIS, I'D QUESTION IF YO U ENLISTED YOUR POOR WIFE OR SON INTO HELPING YOU TORTURE THAT BOY!" Mrs. Prigmore roared, and Vernon was surprised that she could roar louder than her husband. Meanwhile, in the car, Josh and Gwen were having a discussion of their own.

"Joshua, surely we can't just leave poor Harry here to suffer like this, can we? After all, he's such a nice boy and doesn't deserve that!" Gwen said to Josh in a desperate tone of voice.

"Gwen, I don't know if we are or not to be honest, but judging from how loudly our parents are reaming Vernon, we might not, or if we do leave him here, Mom and Dad'll probably put a call into the police and children's services to help him. But you know we won't just leave him alone here to suffer, since I don't know about you, but if I have to, I'll get Dad to do something about it, or I'll just come and break Harry out myself, and I already know that plan will likely fail." Josh said in a vehement tone of voice that Gwen had never heard before in her younger brother.

Just then, the door opened, and their mother sat down in the front seat.

"What's going on? Where's Dad?" Josh asked his mother carefully.

"Your father is still out there having out with that pathetic excuse of a human being Vernon Dursley, since we just found out that he's keeping poor Harry locked in a cupboard, with NO food OR water, and only gave him some little pail to go potty in and judging from the smell they don't let him out often to empty it, except for when they can't stand the smell." Mrs. Prigmore answered her son, unaware of the looks on her children's faces that clearly said that Vernon was not going to like her kids if they met again.

Meanwhile, Petunia had finally recovered, and gone inside to talk to Harry AND Dudley.

"Son, Harry, what happened out there?" Petunia asked, and an ashamed Harry turned to answer her.

"I'm sorry Aunt Petunia. I didn't mean to. I tripped on accident while I was mowing and lost control of the mower. Dudley, I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean to almost kill you with that mower." Harry said as he apologized to his aunt and cousin, and would have apologized to his uncle, but he knew it wouldn't do any good.

"I see, so it was an accident that all that happened? And you did a good job saving your cousin Harry, I'm not mad about it, even if you did do magic to do it, I've come to terms with it, and I owe you an apology for my part in how you've been treated here, since if I'd known that was the case, I'd have done what I'm about to do a long time ago. Dudley, I know you've been trying to tell me that what your father and I have been doing is wrong for some time, but I'm only just now realizing it. So I have to apologize to you as well for not listening to you until now. But, the two of you need to listen to me.

Harry, you can't stay here anymore, even though you're supposed to since it's one of the main things keeping our family safe, and yes Harry, even if your uncle and I have been doing a poor job of showing it, I at least think of you as family, as I'm sure does Dudley here.

Now, I want the two of you to stay put and no matter what you hear, Dudley, don't let your father get to Harry, as I suspect that your father is ready to kill him for attacking you, and if you have to, run and take Harry with you, and keep on running as far as you have to until you get away from your father or until he can't find you anymore, either one.

Harry, never believe for a second that you are a freak, since it is myself and your uncle, if anyone, who are the freaks, and we were just too proud to admit it, but I admit it now, so don't judge Dudley for our mistakes, and try to protect your cousin as best you can. Now stay down!" Petunia said to Dudley and Harry, who were both sitting there looking at Petunia with shocked looks on their faces.

"OK, I forgive you, Aunt Petunia. And Dudley, I've never hated you for what your parents have done, since I know you've always tried to help me where you could because you felt bad for me, like when you knew I was depressed about my cupboard, you tried to cheer me up by telling me it was my personal butler's office, or the time Piers blacked my eye, you blacked his then let me have the only ice pack so I could heal it, even though you needed it for your knee, which that rat blew out when he kicked you." Harry replied.

Just then, the three heard the sound of a door slamming loudly, and two male voices shouting loudly.

"YOU SIR, NEED TO LEAVE AT ONCE BEFORE I SUMMON THE POLICE! YOU ARE TRESPASSING IN MY HOME!" came what was unmistakably the voice of Uncle Vernon.

"I WILL DO NO SUCH THING! I KNOW YOU'RE ABUSING THAT BOY, AND I WILL NOT STAND FOR IT! I DEMAND YOU LET US TAKE HIM WITH US, AND MAYBE WE'LL THINK ABOUT LETTING YOU KEEP YOUR SON!" came the other male voice, who Petunia recognized as being the voice of Colby Prigmore, father of the two Prigmore children who her son and nephew had seemingly befriended, and it gave her an idea.

"Harry, Dudley, listen to me. Go out the back door and go around to where you saw the Prigmores' car parked, and tell Shelley Prigmore that I'd like her to take you two in until I deal with your uncle, and can come to collect you myself, as I'd prefer for you two not to be here when we fight. Now go!" Petunia said, as she unlocked the back door, and Dudley and Harry scurried out to head for the Prigmores' car, just in time to miss the unmistakable sound of a gunshot being fired from inside the house, and as they reached the car, they saw Mrs. Prigmore get out of the car and head into the house.

They then gently knocked on the back door, where they saw Gwen and Joshua sitting, looking mildly worried, and Josh, who heard the knock, briefly rolled the window down, and seeing Harry and Dudley, opened the door quickly so the two could get in and closed and locked it behind them.

"What are you two doing out here?" Josh asked.

"Aunt Petunia told us to come and see if your mom would take us in while she dealt with Uncle Vernon as she revealed she had no clue my suffering and abuse was so bad or she'd have done what she's doing a long time ago, and that she's risking a lot to do this, so she's hoping your mom will let us stay with you." Harry replied.

Gwen was torn between wanting to scowl at how callous Harry's uncle was being, and wanting to reach over and pat the smaller boy's shoulder reassuringly, and settled for doing the latter, and accidentally brushing her lips onto his cheek when he lost his footing and fell forward sideways, causing his cheek to accidentally connect with her lips in the process, causing both Harry and Gwen to blush slightly at this, and Josh and Dudley to exchange a look that said,

"huh?",

then they turned to their sister and cousin, respectively, and grinned.

"Something you two want to tell us?" Josh joked.

Gwen blushed slightly at this, but then scowled at her older brother.

"Of course not. That was an accidental kiss, and one that had Harry not tripped, likely never would've happened." Gwen replied simply.

Harry, for his part, simply nodded in agreement.

"Gwen's right, if anything you should be mad at me if anyone, since I could have avoided that had I not tripped. Sorry about that Gwen." Harry said.

Gwen and Josh, once the two had finally recovered gaping at Harry, blinked then turned as one to face Dudley.

"Ok, Dudley, do you know why Harry just apologized for something that was an accident and that I was joking with him and Gwen about?" Josh asked Dudley, with a piercing look that said "Be honest with me".

"I'd expect that's my father's handiwork, unfortunately, as I believe he beats Harry whenever he does something wrong, then throws him in the cupboard." Dudley replied, somewhat shamefully.

After this, it was harder to tell if Harry, Gwen or Josh was angriest about this, since Harry never knew his cousin was aware of the beatings he'd gotten, and Josh and Gwen were shocked that anyone could harm a six year old like that.

When the latter two had found their voices, Gwen was the first to speak.

"DUDLEY DURSLEY! You knew your father was abusing your cousin and yet you said nothing to anyone at school? You know that's accessory to abuse right there and very wrong?" Gwen shouted, and had Joshua not seen this coming, and gently placed a hand on her shoulder to restrain her, he thought she would have slapped him, but to his surprise, Dudley just looked down shamefully and remorsefully.

"I know. I know I let my cousin down, and you're right, I am horrible. Harry, I'd like to apologize for my part in all that, since it wasn't right. Can you forgive me?" Dudley said, and even Harry was surprised how genuinely sincere his cousin's apology sounded. He then turned back around to face his cousin.

"Dudley, I had no idea you felt so bad about this. Let me guess, Vernon ordered you, on pain of being punished like me, not to say anything of the abuse?" Harry said sarcastically. Dudley blinked, as that was exactly what his father did.

"Umm, actually yes that's EXACTLY what he did." Dudley admitted, causing three very surprised faces to look at him in mixed sympathy and irritation. Joshua, for his part, thought that Dudley was more of a victim than an accomplice, but refrained from saying so as he felt it wouldn't do anything to help. He did, however, turn to Gwen and Harry.

"Gwen, Harry, I'll assume what happened a second ago was an accident, but I digress. The important thing right now is making sure you two are safe. Since I don't know when me and Gwen's parents will get back to the car, we need to keep it locked up, and if needed, be ready to drive it away if our parents do NOT come back. But I'm hoping that last option is only going to be a last resort. Agreed?" Joshua asked his sister and new friend, but before either one could answer, another gunshot could be heard from inside the Dursley house, and Joshua looked over in time to see the front door of Number Four come flying off its hinges.

This action led Vernon to come bearing down on the car, almost as if trying to get Harry, but was disappointed when the door didn't open up, and he started to beat on the car with his fists, almost as if trying to break the windows out to get to his freaky nephew and traitorous son to teach them their place, but before he could finish his plan, he heard footsteps from behind him, and turned to see Colby Prigmore come running up to Vernon.

"DURSLEY, GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY CAR AND AWAY FROM MY CHILDREN! THEY DID NOTHING TO YOU, AND NEITHER DID WE OR YOUR POOR NEPHEW FOR THAT MATTER, AND I'M SURE YOUR SON WAS A VICTIM IN THIS TOO, ALONG WITH YOUR POOR WIFE, WHO YOU JUST SHOT ALONG WITH MY WIFE WHILE WE WERE TRYING TO TALK REASON INTO YOU! LUCKILY I CALLED FOR AN AMBULANCE AND THE AUTHORITIES! NOW STEP AWAY FROM THAT CAR!" Colby bellowed at Vernon, who charged Colby, and the two started exchanging heated punches.

As this was going on, Josh and Harry exchanged surprised looks. Dudley and Gwen, for their parts, were silently making bets on the fight.

"I got my bet on my dad!" Gwen said, as Dudley thought about it, then said,

"I got my bet on your dad too!",

causing Josh and Harry to both raise their eyebrows.

As they were exchanging bets, the first of the paramedic vehicles was arriving. If Harry thought the sight of Aunt Petunia being hauled out on a stretcher was odd, then he was downright shocked to see Mrs. Prigmore also wheeled out on a stretcher, and he turned to see Joshua looking like he was starting to see red, which he saw had Gwen uneasy, but was unsure why it did.

Dudley, for his part, actually let out a small scream, and Gwen spun around in time to see Vernon manage to get a shot off on her dad as he crumpled to the grass like a rag doll, but luckily the authorities had chosen just then to arrive, literally pulling in right when Vernon pulled the trigger, and were able to witness him shoot , who was being wheeled away in a stretcher like Aunt Petunia and Mrs. Prigmore before him.

Harry gulped slightly at this as he realized that his new friends could be orphans, and it'd be his fault since their parents only got themselves shot while helping him and Dudley escape. Almost as if sensing his thoughts, Gwen turned to Harry. Joshua and Dudley turned to Harry as well.

"Don't try to blame yourself for any of this, Harry. The one to blame is your uncle. We're still your friends, Harry, no matter what!" Gwen said, squeezing Harry's hand. Joshua, for his part, raised an eyebrow at this. Dudley, however, tapped Joshua on the shoulder to get his attention.

"Hmm?" Joshua said as he turned around to see that there was an officer wanting into the car.

"Are you the Prigmore children?" the officer asked.

"Me and my sister Gwen are, officer, and these 2 are our friends Dudley and Harry." Joshua answered.

"OK, well, I don't know about your friends yet, but I know you two will have to come with me." the officer said as he led Gwen and Josh away from the car, and left a shocked Dudley and Harry there.

"OK, listen to me closely, okay kids?" the officer said to Josh and Gwen, who nodded OK.

"Your parents were both injured in that attack by Vernon Dursley, who is now in custody, but we need you to answer something for us, honestly. OK?" The officer asked Joshua and Gwen, who nodded.

"OK, when we investigated the house of Number Four, we saw that it looked like someone was living in the cupboard under the stairs. I was wondering if you knew anything of it?" the officer asked.

"Yes, officer, that would be where Vernon made poor Harry sleep, with no food or water, and without being allowed to use the bathroom, only being given a pail to do his business in. Dudley, for his part knew about it and was helping Harry bear as best he could, but he couldn't say anything on pain of punishment by his father, but that you'll have to ask him about yourselves." Joshua replied, as the officers raised eyebrows.

The officer went back and brought Harry and Dudley over.

"So, which one of you two is Harry?" the officer asked, as Harry timidly raised his hand.

The officer turned to Dudley.

"So, is it true your father made your cousin sleep in a cupboard with no food, water, or chance to use the bathroom, save for in a pail?" the officer asked Dudley, who nodded timidly.

The two then turned to Harry, Gwen, Josh and Dudley.

"Well, for now, we'll have to take you four with us until we can figure out what to do with you, since your aunt (here he looked at Harry)/mother (here he looked at Dudley), and your mom and dad (here he looked at Josh and Gwen) all are in the hospital being treated for gunshot wounds, and we have to keep you in protective custody until somebody arrives to collect you." the main officer explained to Josh, Gwen, Dudley and Harry, who nodded.

"So, if any of you have any friends you think would be willing to take you in for the time being, feel free to use my cell phone to contact them." the officer said, as Joshua thought about it, then nodded.

"Can I see your phone, officer? I think I might know someone who would allow us to stay with her." Joshua asked the officer, who handed over his cell phone, which Joshua quickly punched a number into, and listened to it ring.

"Come on, come on, be there…..Ooh, hello? Hi, Mrs. Granger, is Hermione home by any chance? No? Oh, well okay, sorry to bother you. Why am I calling? I was going to ask if it would be alright for me, Gwen and a couple of our friends to come over, since me and Gwen's mom and dad just got into an accident trying to save a little boy our age from an abusive home, and the little boy's cousin ended up a victim of circumstances, and thus in need of saving as well, especially after his mom got injured trying to get him and his cousin out before his father could kill him. What's that? Oh, yes, I quite agree, VERY terrible.

Well, I guess since Hermione's not home, can you let her know I may not be able to be in contact with her for awhile? Why? Because the police came and arrested the uncle, and want to take me, Gwen, Dudley, and Harry, who was the boy being abused, into protective custody, at least until our mom and dad are well enough to care for us again. What's that? Really? You're sure it wouldn't be any trouble? Wow, that's nice of you, ma'am. Thanks, here, talk to the officer, whose cell phone I borrowed, since I expect he'll want directions to your house, if you're going to let us stay with you. OK, see you later, ma'am, thanks! Bye!" Joshua said as he handed the phone to the officer.

"Here, officer, my friend's mom wants to talk to you." Joshua said as he handed the phone over. Josh then turned to the others.

"Well, good news guys, I just talked to a friend of me and Gwen's mom, and she's willing to let us stay at her house for at least tonight, so that they can figure out more suitable arrangements for us." Josh said.

"Wow, bro. How'd you get Miss Granger to let us stay over there?" Gwen asked, causing Dudley and Harry to look at the other two in confusion.

"Simple. I explained the situation to her. Apparently Hermione was at school taking a makeup test or something. Dunno why that girl likes to do schoolwork so much, but I suppose at least it's good she's trying to plan for her future." Joshua mused. Dudley and Harry exchanged a look then both nodded.

"OK, who the bloody hell is Hermione, and what are you talking about?" Harry asked.

Josh turned to Harry.

"Hermione is a good friend of mine and Gwen's who we've known for a few years, and as to the rest, well let's just say she's a tad over-studious and leave it at that for now, but as I said, we're staying at her house for now." Josh answered.

Gwen smirked, as she thought she heard the faintest hint of excitement in her brother's voice. Josh turned and frowned at his sister.

"What? Something on my face?" Josh asked.

Dudley laughed at the question, while Gwen rolled her eyes. Harry, for his part, simply cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"Never mind, bro." Gwen said.

Josh blinked, but shrugged and said nothing. Just then, the officer walked back up.

"OK, you four hop in the squad car. You're going to be staying with the Grangers, who are good friends of the Prigmores, until the Prigmore siblings' parents are well enough to take them back in, at which time you two will likely follow, unless you reach other arrangements. So I wish you four the best of luck." the officer said as the four children got into the police car, while it drove away from the driveway of Number Four.

Dudley, for his part, was wondering why they didn't grab any of his stuff for him and Harry, and figured it was because they'd forgotten it. Meanwhile, Josh and Gwen were having a discussion in hushed whispers, while Josh kept occasionally shooting Gwen death glares, at which point she would scowl back, then they'd resume the hushed whispering.

Finally, some twenty minutes later, the police car pulled up in front of what was presumably the Granger household, and the officer opened the door for the group of kids, and Josh went up and knocked on the front door of the house, then retreated a few steps to wait with Gwen while someone answered the door.

Eventually, Josh and Gwen turned around as the door opened, and a woman of average build, with brown bushy hair, and a diminutive sounding voice stood in the door, but her hardened gaze softened some when she recognized Josh and Gwen. She gave Dudley and Harry curious looks, but after Josh explained who they were, she relaxed. She then addressed the four.

"OK, kids, listen to me. While you and Gwen already know me through Hermione, Josh, Harry and Dudley here do not, so for Harry and Dudley, my name is Jean Granger, but you can all call me Mrs. Granger ." Mrs. Granger said to Dudley and Harry, while Gwen sent a knowing smirk at Josh, who had an unreadable expression on his face, though he was slightly scowling at his sister.

Mrs. Granger turned to the four again.

"Our daughter, Hermione, who is about your age, should be home fairly soon, so just make yourselves comfortable until then. Okay?" Mrs. Granger asked the four, who nodded.

Josh kept an eye on Harry though, as a part of him wondered if Harry would subconsciously try to hide in the cupboard under the Grangers' stairs, just out of habit, or not, so he took Harry off to the side, and stared him in the eye.

"Harry, listen to me. You aren't at the Dursleys' house anymore, so you're not allowed to hide in the cupboard under the stairs anymore, so I'd appreciate it if you stayed away from there, okay?" Joshua said to Harry, who gulped nervously at how perceptive his friend was, before nodding agreement, and then heading back into the sitting room with Josh to rejoin the others, where they were playing a board game, and Gwen was apparently winning, but she grinned when she saw Josh and Harry walk back into the room. She then patted two seats next to her.

"Bro, Harry, come play SORRY with us. We left your favorite color open." Gwen said to Josh, who grinned.

"I'm sold. Harry, come on, buddy, have a seat, and let me show you how to play this game, since I bet that ruddy uncle of yours wouldn't let you play any board games either, and I don't think Dudley even played that many games." Josh said reassuringly to Harry, who sat down next to Josh and took the proffered green pieces and set them down on the board, while Josh put his customary red pieces down on the board, where Gwen was already blue and Dudley yellow, and they started playing.

While Josh's explanation of SORRY went fairly quickly and easily for Harry, who took to the game surprisingly quickly, the game itself took quite awhile, and as a result, all four were so preoccupied with trying to out-do each other, none of them heard the front door open and then close, or the shout of,

"Hey Mom, I'm home!"

that announced Hermione's return home, but her reaction to seeing her best friend in her living room certainly got the four's attention.

"Joshua Prigmore, you didn't say you were coming over today, shame on you!" Hermione playfully scolded Josh, who spun around, and seeing Hermione standing there, wearing a mock-hurt expression, grinned sheepishly, as his friend rushed forward and hugged him. Then she turned to Gwen.

"So, I see you saw my new SORRY set, and have broken it in nicely. What brings you guys here? Not that it isn't good to see you of course, because it really is." Hermione asked. Josh then turned to Gwen, and the two exchanged a look before Gwen nodded, and Josh turned back to Hermione.

"Umm, it's kind of a long story, Herms, so if you want, I can tell you in private." Josh said, and Hermione, realizing that it was serious, nodded.

"OK, guys, I'll be back in a bit. Harry, play my pieces, okay?" Josh asked Harry, who nodded eagerly and took over playing the red pieces, not noticing the slightly jealous but playful look Gwen sent him, while Josh took Hermione out back and sat down on a bench next to her.

"OK, it all started this afternoon, when my parents were on their way to a business deal involving one Vernon Dursley and his family." Josh said as he started explaining all about what happened to Hermione, who by the time Josh finished, had tears in her eyes, and was ready to go and give Vernon a piece of her mind, and to a lesser extent Dudley, but then she recalled what Josh said about Dudley doing what he did under pressure, and decided against it.

When Josh said that Harry'd never done much save for whatever chores Vernon could find, and never left his cupboard, save for to do chores, and wasn't given food, water OR time to use the bathroom, and given a pail to do his business in, Hermione gasped, and developed a new level of respect for her friend, as she realized what he was doing.

By letting Harry play his red pieces while he talked to Hermione, she knew he was trying to make Harry happy, and help Dudley feel better about himself and get along with his cousin, even though Dudley's father was the reason Josh's parents and Harry's aunt were in the hospital with gunshot wounds, being treated, and he was staying with her until his parents got better, if they got better, which made her gain a bit more respect for Dudley.

Hermione then turned to Josh.

"So, let me get this straight. Harry here and Dudley are effectively homeless unless their aunt/mother survives, and the same is true of you and Gwen?" Hermione asked Josh.

Josh frowned at how bluntly she put it, but nodded.

"Exactly, Herms, luckily Vernon's in jail now though." Josh said.

For some reason unknown to even her, Hermione moved forward and in a surprising move, at least for Hermione, she kissed Josh on the cheek, causing him to blink slightly, then, to his surprise, feel his face go red slightly from where she kissed him, as she felt her own face do the same.

Unknown to them, Mrs. Granger was watching them with an amused smile on her face.

_I knew those two would be good for each other, and do well together, but how long will it take them to realize it? _Mrs. Granger thought to herself as she went back to her cooking.

Meanwhile, back in the backyard, Hermione was flushing slightly in embarassment that she'd kissed her best friend on the cheek, but surprisingly she found she liked it, and that it felt good.

Josh, for his part, was still shocked by his friend's spontaneous action, and speechless, but when he did find his voice, he turned to Hermione.

"Umm, why did you do that, Herms?" Josh asked.

"I don't know why, maybe because I thought it was sweet of you to be so nice to two complete strangers?" Hermione said. Josh raised his eyebrow at this.

"So if I get a kiss on the cheek just for helping a random stranger, then why did I get the feeling you weren't planning on kissing me?" Josh asked, unaware that Gwen had walked out to get Josh and Hermione, and walked out as Joshua had said,

"kissing me?",

so she, assuming the worst, turned right around and went back into the house, then went back out.

"Hermione, bro, Mrs. Granger wants us in the sitting room." Gwen said. Josh and Hermione went inside to see what Hermione's mother wanted.

Upon seeing her brother and best friend blushing, Gwen grinned.

"Something you two want to tell me about?" Gwen quipped to Josh, who scowled at his sister.

"Very funny, Gwen. Just because I pulled that on you and Harry earlier does NOT mean you can use it on me, you know." Josh said, scowling somewhat as Hermione raised an eyebrow in confusion.

Hermione turned to Gwen, and sent the younger girl a look that said "spill it.", which Gwen replied to by mouthing, "later." back. Once the three sat down in the living room, Mrs. Granger spoke.

"OK, I just got off the phone with the hospital, and I have good news and bad news. The good news is that Joshua, Gwen, your father came out of surgery fine and should be good to come get you guys in three days, but the bad news is that Harry, Dudley, your aunt/mother didn't make it through the surgery, and Joshua, Gwen, your mother's in a coma, and the doctors don't know when, if at all, she'll come out of her coma. Harry, Dudley, I'd like to offer my condolences on your loss." Mrs. Granger said, as Dudley stood there, devastated at the news that he was for all intents and purposes, an orphan, as was Harry, and Harry had to hold his cousin up while he sobbed into Harry's shoulder for a quarter hour.

Harry just patted Dudley's shoulder.

"There, there, Dud, she's in a better place now, and even though she didn't treat me the best, I'll miss her too." Harry said reassuringly to Dudley, who hugged his cousin thankfully.

Hermione, for her part, was impressed with how polite and mature Harry seemed to be.

Josh and Gwen vowed then and there, they would do what they could to at least make sure Dudley and Harry went to loving homes.

Mrs. Granger, for her part, was also impressed with Harry's quiet politeness and maturity, and planned to talk to her husband about adopting the boy, while putting a bug into Josh and Gwen's ear about getting their parents to take Dudley in.

That established, Mrs. Granger reached into the closet and took out a box.

"Monopoly, anyone?" Mrs. Granger asked, handing the box around to the kids who each took a piece and started playing.

As the game proceeded onward, it was made very quickly apparent that while Dudley might be the more physically intimdating, Harry appeared to be the one to watch when you have money left lying around, as he'd already effectively cleaned Hermione out and had Josh on the edge of being out, but Gwen as usual was putting up a good fight being one of the only ones who was even close to being an even match to Harry.

Even then, it was still clear that Harry had the game won, especially after he managed to get hotels up on his green properties, causing Joshua to bankrupt on them, and subsequently setting Harry up for the game-clinching setup of hotels on the dark blue properties, enabling Harry to finally bankrupt Gwen, when a timely Chance card forced her to land on Harry's Boardwalk, thus winning the game for Harry, and causing the others to look at Harry in shock.

After the Monopoly was put away, and Hermione finished her homework, she took Harry and Dudley out to show them around town while Josh and Gwen went to the hospital with Mrs. Granger to check on their parents. When they got there, the on-duty nurse said that Mrs. Prigmore wasn't in any shape for visitors, but that was, though visting hours were over.

Mrs. Granger frowned, but agreed they could come back tomorrow to see Mr. Prigmore, so she led the children out of the building, and after they left, Mrs. Granger decided to treat Josh and Gwen to some ice cream, since she figured Hermione was doing the same with Dudley and Harry, and she felt bad for the two since they were just trying to be good Samaritans, and their parents nearly paid the price for it.

As she, Josh and Gwen were enjoying themselves, Hermione, Dudley and Harry were having a very…..interesting time of things, to put it mildly.

While they were walking around in the local park, they encountered a sight none were prepared to see: Dudley's old gang, now led by Piers Polkiss, a short, rat-faced boy, who Hermione and Harry were getting confused for a rat with blonde hair, who sneered at the trio.

"Well, well, if it isn't Ickle Diddykins and his merry band of freaky rejects! What's the matter, can't get love even from his own daddy?" Piers taunted Dudley, who saw red, although it was Harry who reacted.

"WHAT WAS THAT, RATFACE? FOR YOUR INFORMATION, DUDLEY JUST LOST HIS MOTHER BECAUSE HIS DIRTBAG OF A FATHER SHOT AND KILLED HER, AND HE TRIED TO DO THE SAME TO DUDLEY, SO IF I WERE YOU, I'D SHUT YOUR TRAP NOW BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING YOU'LL REGRET LATER, SINCE YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT! OH, AND YOU'RE THE FREAK HERE, POLKIESS!" Harry snarled at Piers, unaware that as he did so, Piers began to inflate like a balloon, and his hair started turning green, and he started floating, and it was this last that made Hermione and Dudley blink, causing Harry to turn and face them, and upon seeing their shocked looks, spun around and saw what he'd done to Piers and gaped in shock that he'd messed up so badly.

He then turned to face Hermione and Dudley, worry clearly written his face.

"Oh no, what did I do? Someone help him, please! I didn't mean to kill him!" Harry said, clearly panicking.

Hermione, being the level-headed one, naturally was first to react, and pulled out a phone from in her pocket, much to Harry's surprise.

Dudley, however, was half-expecting it.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Granger was just finishing up an interesting discussion with Josh, who'd filled her in more properly on the events that'd transpired at the Dursleys', as well as some of his observations on the matter.

Mrs. Granger was getting ready to say something else, when her cell phone rang.

"Hello, Jean Granger speaking. Hermione? What did you say? We're on our way!" Mrs. Granger said as she hung up, then turned to Josh and Gwen.

"Well, kids, as much as I hate to do it, we're going to have to cut our social gathering short, since Hermione said she and the others got jumped at the park, so we need to go make sure she's ok." Mrs. Granger said.

After this, Josh and Gwen quickly finished their sundaes, and, with a quick nod to Mrs. Granger, the three hopped in her red minivan, as the three sped off to reinforce Hermione, Harry and Dudley.

While they were heading to save them, however, Piers was steadily getting bigger and bigger, and looking more and more likely to pop with each passing second, and since they had no way to speak of to save the poor boy, Harry whimpered a bit in fear, as the group hid behind a tree, before Piers finally, with a loud

"URF!",

exploded into pieces, his remains splashing around everywhere, causing the park to be splattered with blood, and bits of skin and bones, but Harry was really whimpering now, as he realized he'd unintentionally killed someone, even if it was accidental, and was likely a criminal now like Uncle Vernon.

Hermione, for her part, was shocked at what had happened, but didn't blame Harry, as he was provoked by Piers, and lost control, and didn't mean to make him swell up like a balloon and finally pop like he did.

Dudley, however, was another story.

On one hand, he was pleased that his cousin defended him like he did, but on the other, he was afraid for him, because he knew Piers was well-connected, and his friends would likely try to go after Harry in retaliation for killing their friend, even if it was an accident.

It was fortunate for the three that Mrs. Granger chose precisely that moment to pull up, and with Josh and Gwen, hop out, and all three gasp at the sight of the blood and carnage that beheld them, as they realized Piers Polkiss was dead, but that Harry, Dudley and Hermione were nowhere to be seen, thus causing them to worry about the missing three, until Josh, on a whim, looked in a bush, and found them cowering in fear.

"Gwen, Mrs. Granger, I found them!" Josh shouted to get the attention of the two he called, who came running over, and gasped at how scared Harry looked, as well as how much fear could be seen on Hermione and Dudley's faces, so after a few tense seconds, Mrs. Granger finally broke the silence.

"What happened here? Are you three okay?" Mrs. Granger asked.

After the three exchanged a look, Hermione turned to her mom.

"Umm, yeah, other than Harry accidentally inflating a boy to death, we're good." Hermione said in a surprisingly casual tone, causing everyone else to blanch, then turn and look at her like she was crazy.

"HERMIONE JEAN GRANGER! I know I raised you better than to lie about something like that!" Mrs. Granger yelled.

"Please, Mrs. Granger, she's not lying. I did accidentally inflate Piers Polkiss, but in all fairness, he provoked me by insulting Dudley's mother, and Dudley, as well as myself and Hermione, by calling the lot of us freaks and saying Dudley couldn't get love even from Uncle Vernon. However, I'm still sorry I did it, since even he doesn't deserve what he got." Harry said, in a meek but confident voice, causing Hermione to beam gratefully at Harry, while Josh breathed a sigh of relief that his best friends weren't crazy.

Gwen, for her part, was relieved that her friends were okay, but a small part of her was twinging a bit on the inside to hear Harry come to Hermione's defense so quickly, though again this was so deep down, Gwen didn't notice. Hermione, however, had an innocent question.

"Why did Harry, when Piers provoked him, cause him to inflate to death after turning his hair green?" Hermione asked.

"That, Miss Granger, is a good question, and one that you, I fear, are too young to appreciate as yet. However, I am still going to have to ask you and your friends to come with me." came a voice from behind everyone, that caused the group as a whole to turn around, and they were NOT in the slightest bit prepared for what awaited them…

_**A/N: and thus ends chapter 1! Ooh, cliffy! What did you think of the way I started it? Was it good? Not so good? And who does everyone think the voice that answered Hermione belongs to? For anyone who guesses right, kudos and major props to you! Feel free to post your guess in a review, and hopefully I'll have chapter 2 out soon, but given I'm also working on my other big project, I'm making no promises. Enjoy!**_

_**-sithlorde1988**_


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